We use a variety of different instruments, mostly multispectral sensors with a few wavelength bands, typically green, red, near-infrared (NIR), and shortwave infrared (SWIR) bands, and matching the bands of common satellite sensors. The instruments are mounted pairwise, measuring incoming and reflected radiation. We also use PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation) sensors measuring above and below the canopy for estimation of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (APAR). All instruments are robust and able to measure year-round.
The instruments are usually mounted on masts, either separate from flux measurments or in the flux towers. The height is selected as to get an overview of the canopy and varies from a few metres to 100 m in the highest masts. Typically, the sensors measure areas from tens to hundreds of square metres.
Examples of sensor brands are Skye, and Decacon. The sensors need to be robust to withstand harsh weather conditions at our sites.
We also interested in adding additional equipment and measurements that help us understand vegetation processes at the different stations, e.g. phenological cameras and observations, leaf-area index measurements, fAPAR measurements, sap-flow measurements, etc.
